Lion Links: 4/10/20

How’s it going, Mane Landers? I don’t know about you all, but April is flying by on my end. Hopefully you all are able to stay entertained and occupied as the pandemic wears on and we still go without sports. Try to support your local restaurants and businesses if you can, but now is also a good time to try cooking as well. I’ll be whipping out the crock pot for some spaghetti and meatballs to get me through the next couple of days. But enough about food, let’s get to the links!

Orlando City Donated Apparel for Masks

Days after announcing its All for Orlando campaign, Orlando City donated nearly 1,000 pieces of apparel to a local initiative called the Million Masks Challenge. Approximately 5,000 total masks will be created from the donation of club gear, and every mask made will be given directly to Orlando Health to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus in Central Florida while keeping health care workers safer.

Pride Players Preparing

With the 2020 Tokyo Olympics postponed, Orlando Pride and National Women’s Soccer League players are having to change their expectations for the year. For Pride and Canadian defender Shelina Zadorsky, she and her international team will miss out on redemption after last year’s World Cup. Zadorsky stated that the Pride are staying close despite the not being together, but admitted that it can get lonely and that she missed her teammates.

New Zealand captain and Pride defender Ali Riley knows the Olympics are a big stage for countries that don’t usually get international attention.

“Being from a small nation, it’s a chance to bring attention and inspiration to the little girls who maybe will take up soccer because they watch us,” Riley said. “It helps, too, to get more funding and more exposure, which are things that we really, really need as a team and a federation.”

While Riley will have to wait a year before leading her country in Tokyo, she’s determined to take care of her physical and mental fitness so she can hit the ground running when the Pride season begins.

Staying Entertained

Although we won’t be able to watch Orlando City take on the Columbus Crew tomorrow night like originally scheduled, there is still plenty going on in the coming days to beat the boredom. Orlando’s City Classic this weekend will be the club’s MLS opener against New York City FC so make sure to check that out. If you’re a video game fan, Orlando’s eMLS representative will take on the Crew’s tomorrow night as well.

Although the Olympics are postponed, NBC Sports Network will replay classic Olympic moments over the next two weeks. On April 13, the network will show the United States Women’s National Team’s semifinal win over Canada in the 2012 London Olympics.

Orlando Community MVP

With everything going on, it’s easy to forget that April is also National Volunteer Month and the Orlando City Foundation gave a nice shout out to volunteer coach Sean Smith. Volunteering over the past two seasons, Smith has enjoyed helping young players learn soccer and live healthy lives. He helps out in the community beyond the soccer field as well so if you see him out and about make sure to give him a wave or a thanks for helping make Orlando great.

Free Kicks

• Nani was included in an MLS poll regarding what group of players you’d like to spend quarantine with, although Josef Martinez is in his group as well. Make sure to check out our “quaranteams” as well, where every group is a great pick.
• Pride defender Emily Sonnett provided plenty of laughs in a podcast alongside USWNT teammate Lindsey Horan.

• With the pandemic preventing family members to visit their loved ones undergoing chemotherapy, a Houston Dynamo fan wasn’t able to be by his wife’s bedside while she battled cancer. That didn’t stop him from making sure she knew he was by her side by finding a shady spot outside her window in the parking lot.

• United States Men’s Soccer Team icons Landon Donovan and Eric Wynalda are continuing their rivalry as coaches in the United Soccer League.
• The Scottish Premier League is suspending its season until June 10 as European leagues make decisions regarding the pandemic. The Belarussian Premier League is still playing though and FC Dynamo Brest has a unique way to put fans in the seats.

We’ll end our links there for today. I don’t think I could ever bring myself to buy a virtual ticket, but it’s an interesting idea. I hope you all have a wonderful Friday and a great weekend.